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Women in piracy
While piracy was predominantly a male activity or occupation, a significant minority of historical pirates have been female. Female pirates, like other women in crime, faced issues in practicing this occupation and in punishment for it. The following are female pirates, who may or may not have lived, that are recognized by historians and the time period they were active. Early pirates Viking Age and Medieval pirates 16th century pirates 17th century pirates Female Interaction with Pirates in the 18th Century The first level on which pirates and women interacted was through purely business affairs. We often see, in times of war and other hardship that calls upon the entirety of the male population, that women often step up to work the jobs their fathers, husbands, and sons left behind. This was no less the case during the Golden Age of piracy, when many men were forced to set sail for economic reasons. Many women, as a result, took up important jobs previously filled by men. They were allowed to trade, own ships, and work as retailers. Often they were innkeepers or the heads of alehouses. Some laws in seaside towns were even written to allow widows to keep their husbands' responsibilities and property. This was important, as alehouses and other such establishments were spots where pirates congregated and traded with each other and with the people onshore. As heads of these establishments, women had a considerable amount of freedom in business. They boarded and fed pirates, bought illegally pirated goods, acted as pawnbrokers for pirates, and even gave out loans, something many men, let alone women, were cautious of in that time period. In this way, women dealt with pirates and came into possession of pirate goods. When authorities came looking to arrest their clients for piracy, these women even sheltered them from harm. Some women interacted with pirates on a closer level, not just by trading with them, but by marrying them. However, this was not as advantageous as it seemed. Although their husbands may have been very rich, women often gained very little by their union, as it was difficult for sailors to send home wages and booty earned overseas to their wives waiting back at home. Even though these women were not generally wealthy as a result of their marriages, they were favored by pirates that came to shore and their houses and establishments were used as a safe haven for people who otherwise would be enemies of all nations. On the third, final, and most intimate level of interaction, women interacted with male pirates by becoming pirates themselves. This seems surprising for quite a few reasons. First, there are very few female pirates documented by name, and the information on them is often shady and filled with speculation and flourishes rather than facts. In addition to this, pirates did not let women on their ships very often. There were not many conveniences of technology on pirate ships, and not many women were up to the physically demanding tasks the crew had to do. In fact, there were not many men who were up to it, either. Women were also often regarded as bad luck among pirates, and it was feared that arguments would break out between the male members of the crew about them. On many ships, women, young boys, and even different acts such as gambling were prohibited by the ship's contract that the crew all signed. She and Mary Read, another female pirate, are often credited with this act as if they had been creative and innovative in their cross-dressing. However, that was not the case. Many women dressed as men during this time period, in an effort to take advantage of the many rights, privileges, and freedoms that were exclusive to men. Female pirates of this time also had a very unique appearance. In modern media female pirates are often shown to be dressed in the same fashion as their male counterparts. While true, there are also at least a half dozen first hand accounts, collected from port authorities as well as pirating victims, describing a style that was unique to their gender. One trend that was especially popular among female pirates of the South American Pacific coast and Caribbean was incorporating common sailing equipment such as fishing nets, jackstays, trunnels, chocks and cordage into their clothing. Hence the contemporary term fishnet stockings. 18th century pirates 19th century pirates China Sea pirates of the 20th century Female pirates in fiction While most fictional and dramatic depictions of pirates have been male, some notable female pirates have been depicted. See: * Bêlit from Robert E. Howard's Conan short-story "Queen of the Black Coast" and related media. * Emeraldas from the animes: "Space Pirate Captain Harlock", "Galaxy Express 999", and "Queen Emeraldas" by Leiji Matsumoto * Dragon Lady depicted in Milton Caniff's comic series Terry and the Pirates was inspired by Lai Choi San * Morgan Adams from the 1995 film Cutthroat Island. * Mary "Jacky" Faber, from the young adult novel, Bloody Jack, and its sequels. * Elaine Marley (in Monkey Island series of games) * Multiple fictional depictions of Anne Bonny and Mary Read * Elizabeth Swann from The Walt Disney Company|Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean films. * Mistress Ching from The Walt Disney Company|Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End film. * Angelica from The Walt Disney Company|Disney's Pirates of the Caribbean: On Stranger Tides film. * Nami and Nico Robin among others (from the manga and anime series, One Piece) * Faris from the video game Final Fantasy V * Isabela from the Dragon Age video game series. * Fina and Aika, among many others, from the pirate-themed video game Skies of Arcadia * Revy from the manga and anime series Black Lagoon * Tetra "Princess Zelda" from "The Legend of Zelda: The Wind Waker" * Ruth from the Operetta Pirates of Penzance * Missee Lee, a Chinese woman pirate captain in Missee Lee by Arthur Ransome * Ezri Delmastro (Ezrianne de la Mastron) and Zamira Drakasha from the second novel in the Gentleman Bastards Sequence Red Seas Under Red Skies, by Scott Lynch (author) * Elizabeth Ramsey in Age of Empires III. * Elena Dugan (Lady Galbraith) in "The Seas of Fionnghuala" * Nancy Kington and Minerva Sharpe in Pirates by Celia Rees. * Seth Balmore from the video game Lost Odyssey. * Space Pirate Queen Emeraldes from several Leiji Matsumoto anime, including Galaxy Express 999. * Janme Dark from Aoike Yasuko's "Sons of Eve" manga series. * Space Pirate Sheila from Korean anime "Space Thunder Kids." * Captain Marika Kato of the Bentenmaru from Bodacious Space Pirates. * Blackboots from Mary Hanson-Roberts' graphic novel Here Comes A Candle. * The Surprisingly Curvaceous Pirate from Gideon Defoe's The Pirates! series of books. * Emer from A.S. King's young adult novel The Dust of 100 Dogs. Category:Real Life Pirates Category:17th Century Pirates Category:18th Century Pirates